Forever
by Goddess Isa
Summary: Buffy refuses to accept the answer from Angel that this is it and they will go back in time and she'll never remember.  'Cause of course, they will 'cause I changed it. =)


TITLE: Forever  
AUTHOR: Goddess Isa  
EMAIL: goddessisa@aol.com  
SUMMARY: Buffy refuses to accept the answer from Angel that this is it and they will go back in time and she'll never remember. 'Cause of course, they will 'cause I changed it. =)  
SPOILER: I Will Remember You & Hero (slight)  
DISTRIBUTION: Sandee, of course - My site - http://planetslaythis.homestead.com - Crystal and Butterfly if they want it - A Soul's Redemption - Anyone else - sure, just email me & lmk where it's going - I like seeing my name in print =)  
FEEDBACK: Please, I'd hate to have to Slay for it. =P  
RATING: TV-14  
DISCLAIMER: Joss owns Buffy, Angel and any other Sunnydale characters I may mention. I own Corey. The line quoted is from Immortal written by the forever brilliant Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder. 'Forever' is by Mariah Carey. Her Fantasy CD is definitely her best, but I would do ANYTHING to find the damn MUSIC BOX CD. I also gotta give the girl major props for ALWAYS including the lyrics with her CDs. g   
  
  
  
//Those days of love are gone  
  
Our time is through  
  
Still I burn on and on  
  
All of my life only for you   
  
  
From now until forever  
  
And ever my darling  
  
Forever   
  
You will always be the only one  
  
Forever   
  
You will always be the only one   
  
  
As long as I shall live  
  
I'll hold you dear  
  
And I will reminisce  
  
Of our love all through the years   
  
  
If you should ever need me  
  
Unfailingly I will return to your arms  
  
And unburden your heart  
  
And if you should remember  
  
That we belong together  
  
Never be ashamed  
  
To call my name   
  
Tell me I'm the one you treasure   
  
  
Forever\\   
  
  
The world could've been burning to ash at that very moment and she wouldn't have left his embrace. "I can't lose you," she whispered against his shoulder. "I can't lose you, not again. I know you say I won't remember it, but I know I will." she took his hand and placed it on her heart. "I can't and won't lose what we shared from here."   
  
He kissed her again and she had to break away to sob into his chest. He stroked her hair, watching the clock tick away, wishing he could make it last longer.   
  
He still held the stone in his pocket, the one that would give them what they so desperately wanted.   
  
The one that would kill them.   
  
"I can't lose you," she kept repeating. "I just can't."   
  
"Buffy, listen to me."   
  
She kept on crying.   
  
"Buffy. Look at me."   
  
Slowly, she raised her eyes and looked at him. He was crying, which only made her sobs grow more ragged. She tried to catch her breath and keep her eyes linked with his.   
  
"Buffy, when we were together, part of me..... I gave it to you forever. It will be yours, forever."   
  
She took that in. Her voice dropped below a whisper. "No. It won't. Because I won't be around forever."   
"Buffy--"   
  
"You think the only way to save me is to break us up. The only way to save me is to stop me from being a Slayer."   
  
"I--"   
  
"That's the only way, Angel. I'm going to die early and no one and nothing can change that. I am who I am and frankly, I wouldn't trade this life because the person I've become is someone I can live with being. The girl that grew up in LA....." she shuddered at the thought. "Our gang can only handle one Cordelia, and just barely with that."   
  
He gave her a small smile. Twenty seconds.   
  
"Angel, how could you do this? How could you make a decision about *my* life without asking me first?"   
  
He pulled the stone out of his pocket. "I didn't."   
  
"What? What is that?"   
  
"If we destroy it in the next seven seconds--"   
  
"Give it to me!" Buffy reached for it but Angel kept it away from her.  
  
"I don't want to do this to you Buffy."   
  
She managed to get it from him and smash it with the heel of her shoe. She grabbed him and kissed him, counting. She waited a full minute and pulled away, trying to breathe.   
  
"It worked, right? We get forever."   
  
"I hope so." he said quietly.   
  
"I'll show you." she said, taking his hand and pulling him to bed. "I promise you, everything will be fine."   
  
  
*****   
  
  
Angel was scared to death.   
  
It was the day of the battle. The Scourge had come and gone, but left alot of death in its path, including Oz and Cordelia. The remaining Scooby Gang members and Doyle sat scattered around the room, resting, their injuries bandaged and stitched up. Angel couldn't sit still.   
  
He paced furiously, scared to death. Buffy, his wife, his entire world, was all alone in there, fighting the greatest battle of her life, and no one could help her. She was on her own and everything was up to the Fates now. The idea scared him to death.   
  
"Mr. Summers?" a man came out and wiped the sweat off his brow.   
  
"Yes. Is she all right?"   
  
"Your wife is resting now, room 227. She's very weak, so only stay with her for a moment." he walked away before Angel could inquire any further.   
  
"Do let us know right away," Giles said as Angel headed down the hall.   
  
"I will." he walked a few more steps then turned around again. "One of you should call her mother."   
  
"I'll do it." Xander got up and Willow handed him his crutches. He hobbled away and the noises faded as Angel searched for his wife's room.   
  
He found it and peeked through the window in the door at her first. He'd been expecting to find her laying down, tubes in her arms, tears in her eyes.   
  
He found her sitting up, breast feeding their child.   
  
"Buffy!" he rushed to her and knelt at her bedside. "You're both okay!" He kissed her forehead and that of the baby. He/she was dressed in a white tee shirt, a diaper and a blue hospital blanket that didn't give any evidence as to the child's sex.   
  
"What did you expect, silly?"   
  
"The baby's fine?"   
  
"Corey is fine," she said with an evil smile, purposely using the name they'd chosen for their child whether they had a boy or a girl. "A few weeks premature but otherwise, the baby is in perfect health."   
  
Angel groaned. "Can I hold Corey?"   
  
"When I'm done nursing," she carefully chose her words, grinning all the way.   
  
"Buffy," he said in a warning tone as he pulled a chair over. "Quit fooling."   
  
"Fooling?" she asked with feigned innocence. "Who's fooling?"   
  
He glared at her and she giggled.   
  
"If you must know," she took a long, drawn out sigh. "I used the name we decided on before I went into labor, obviously."   
  
"Buffyyyyyy," he drew her name out, growing slightly angry.   
  
"This is your pay back for almost robbing us of this opportunity." she said with a glare of her own. "Do you realize this almost never happened? Do you realize we were almost all alone? We wouldn't be married, we wouldn't have Corey, it would be horrible."   
  
"Yes, I realize. I'm sorry. I'll never, ever do something like that again. I promise."   
"Really?"   
  
He linked his finger with hers. "Pinky swear."   
  
"Good."   
  
The baby finished eating and Buffy carefully pryed the tiny lips off her breast and offered the child to Angel. "Anissa Corrinne needs to be burped," Buffy said. "Would you like to hold your daughter?"   
  
Angel took her into his arms and gently rubbed her back, causing her to give a tiny release. He kissed her cheek and held her close to his chest. "I love you, Corey. More than anything."   
  
"Anything?" Buffy arched an eyebrow.   
  
"I love you more than anything as well, but it's a different kind of love."   
  
Buffy nodded, understanding. She watched her husband hold her daughter and silently thanked the Oracles for the stone that gave her her future back.   



End file.
